Delhi teacher robbed outside home as policeman waited inside

Two men tried to strangle a 50-year-old school teacher before robbing her of her jewellery outside her home in East Patel Nagar even as a policeman waited for her inside for passport verification. The woman had went out to bring a witness from the neighbourhood to complete the process.

The strangulation attempt knocked the woman unconscious and investigators suspect that the robbers may have left the spot believing that she had died.(AFP/Picture for representation)

Two unidentified men tried to strangle a 50-year-old school teacher before robbing her of her jewellery outside her home even as a policeman waited for her inside on Monday evening, police said.

The policeman from the special branch was at the woman’s house in East Patel Nagar for passport verification and she had stepped out to bring a witness from the neighbourhood to complete the process.

The strangulation attempt knocked the woman unconscious and investigators suspect that the robbers may have left the spot believing that she had died. “My throat hurts and I am unable to speak properly,” the woman said on Wednesday.

Mandeep Singh Randhawa, deputy commissioner of police (central), said a case of robbery has been registered at Patel Nagar police station.

“We suspect the robbers to be from one of the neighbourhoods adjacent to Patel Nagar. We hope to identify and arrest them soon,” said Randhawa.

The woman, Geetanjali Patiyaar, lives with her family and works as a school teacher, police said, adding that the crime took place around 7.45 pm on Tuesday, a few minutes after a policeman visited her home for passport verification.

She had stepped out on the street near her home to look for a witness when she spotted two young men loitering around. “She found their behaviour suspicious as they were walking towards a locked gate. When she informed them about the locked gate, the men pretended to walk away,” said an investigator.

“I was approaching the door of my house when one of the men approached me from behind and pressed my neck with his hands. As I was passing out, the other man pulled out two golden bangles from my hands,” Patiyaar alleged in her police complaint.

Patiyaar regained consciousness five minutes later and found herself inside her home. Her neighbour had brought her inside. Her family then learnt of the robbery and dialled the police control room.

“The woman was too terrified to speak to police initially. Hence, we could register a first information report only the next day,” said the investigator.

Though robberies and snatchings have decreased over the last four years, Delhiites still report nearly seven and 18 such crimes respectively, every day on an average.

To rein in such criminals, police have begun to frequently register a robbery case if a snatcher resorts to the slightest of violence against their victims. If convicted for snatching, a convict can be jailed for up to three years or even let off with a fine. But someone convicted for robbery could be jailed for up to 10 years